AWC’s ‘Wild About Chocolate’ fundraiser set to return Feb. 9

Lauren Muncher with the Alabama Wildlife Center holds a red-tailed hawk. “Wild About Chocolate” attendees will get to visit with the center’s ambassador raptors.

When you think of Valentine’s Day, heart shaped boxes of chocolate are typically the first thing that come to mind, followed by a cute, furry stuffed animal with a ribbon around its neck. This year, why not keep the chocolate, but opt to eat it in the company of a real animal?

The Alabama Wildlife Center will be hosting its annual “Wild About Chocolate” event Feb. 9 at The Harbert Center in Birmingham.

As the center’s biggest fundraising event of the year, there will be auctions, both live and silent, for everything from wildlife-themed artwork to getaways. Of course, there will be chocolate, but instead of a fluffy teddy bear, attendees get to visit with the center’s ambassador raptors.

The ambassador birds, including a number of hawk and owl species, are rescued birds that could not be returned to the wild and have been glove-trained to appear in public. The center’s most recent permanent resident is a juvenile bald eagle, which is still in the process of being glove-trained and can be viewed at the Alabama Wildlife Center’s facilities in Oak Mountain State Park.

The Alabama Wildlife Center is a nonprofit that rehabilitates around 2,000 wild birds, from hummingbirds to cranes and hawks, every year.

Tickets for the event are $75 in advance, $100 at the door and can be purchased on the Alabama Wildlife Center’s website, awrc.org, or by phone at 663-7930.